This is an interdisciplinary event run by Social Care Ireland and The Irish Association of Social Workers.

This two day training takes place on February 11th and 12th. 

The Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act was signed into law on the 30th December 2015. This Act applies to everyone and is relevant to all health and social care services. The Act is about supporting decision making and maximising a person’s capacity to make decisions. The Act will have significant implications for health and social care providers in the provision of safe person-centred care, based on respecting the individual rights of each person.

Participants can e-mail short anonymised case studies which will be used to inform the training to cpd@socialcareireland.ie.

Aim

This course will provide frontline health and social care practitioners with the knowledge and skills required to implement the Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act into everyday practice. In doing so it focuses on the importance of building decision making capacity. It furthermore provides training in the principles of the Act and details how these should be applied in practice. Participants will also examine the role of functional assessment of capacity, the decision making arrangements in addition to provisions such as advance healthcare directives and power of attorney. A key focus of the course is the application of the Act to practical scenarios which frontline practitioners encounter on a daily basis.

Objectives

On completion of this course participants will be able to:

State the purpose of the legislation.
Appreciate the spirit and intention of the Act.
Implement a human rights based approach.
Apply the principles of the Act in practice.
Understand the importance of the following statement and learn strategies for acting on this. “A person is not treated as unable to make a decision unless all practicable steps to help him to do so have been taken without success.”
Appreciate the significance of capacity building.
Understand the role of the functional assessment of capacity.
State the role of a;
Decision Making Assistant
Co Decision Maker
Decision Making Representative
Designated Health Care Representative
Demonstrate an understanding of Advance Health Care and Enduring Power of Attorney.
Understand how existing Wards of Court will be reviewed.
Promote an understanding of the Act within your organisation.
Implement the Act in your daily practice.

Facilitator: Josephine McLoughlin is the director of Legal Capacity Training Ltd, a company which inspires health and social care practitioners to embrace the values and principles of the Convention. Before devoting her work to Legal Capacity Training, Josephine worked as a qualified Social Care Leader for 20 years. In 2015 she completed an LL.M in International and Comparative Disability Law and Policy from the Centre for Disability Law and Policy at NUIG. Upon completion of her studies she was awarded the CDLP Gold Medal for Excellence. Josephine continues to build on her skills and knowledge and recently completed a Certificate in Capacity and Decision Making Support with the Law Society of Ireland.